The present disclosure is directed to an apparatus and method for changing the temperature of a liquid. It finds particular application in warming the beverage contents of a baby's bottle and will be described herein primarily in reference thereto. However, it will be appreciated that the present development may be employed in conjunction with all manner of beverages or other liquids to be warmed or cooled.
Numerous methods are known for heating the contents of a baby bottle prior to feeding, for example, where bottles containing a baby's beverage such as milk or formula have been prepared in advance for later feeding. One prior art method is to immerse the bottle in a bowl of hot water and allow the hot water and the bottle contents to equilibrate. This method is advantageous in that overheating the bottle can readily be avoided, because the bottle contents will never achieve a temperature greater than the temperature of the hot water used to heat the bottle. However, this method is relatively slow. For example, it has been found that heating the contents of a glass bottle in hot water can take approximately 10 minutes. Other methods, such as warming the bottle contents on a stovetop or in a microwave oven, while faster, are prone to overheating the bottle contents. Still other methods involve the use of commercially available bottle warmers. However, these devices are typically electrically operated and thus require a source of electricity, such as batteries or an electrical outlet.
Accordingly, the present invention contemplates a new and improved bottle-warming device and method which can heat the contents of a baby's bottle quickly and efficiently, but without the risk of overheating the bottle contents and without the need for an electrical power supply.